Queer Affinity Instructor Training
DATES:
Kayak Skills Assessment (pre-req) October 7-8 $300
L2-3 River Kayak Instructor Certification Workshop October 9-12 $600
L2-3 River Canoe Instructor Certification Workshop October 9-12 $600

Other costs:
Lodging & Meals
Travel to and from
ACA Membership $40/year
SEIC Dues $30/year

L4 River Kayak, Canoe & Rescue ITE Jordan Taylor (they/them) of Paddlesport Institute will offer a Queer Affinity ICW over 4 days in the fall in the DC area on the Potomac River October 9-12, 2026. A 2 day kayak skills assessment to meet new re-req’s also offered Oct 7-8. It will be possible to certify in Kayak or Canoe, but not both.

Affinity courses are made up of people who share a specific type of identity and are designed to support historically marginalized people, in this case LGBTQ+ individuals. The purpose of offering a Queer Affinity ICW is to offer queer Instructor Candidates a training opportunity in which we are not a minority. Part of being queer is a daily experience of culture that assumes heterosexuality, a gender binary and monogamy as a default. Even very well intentioned paddlesport educators frequently base choices of language, storytelling, humor, etc on these assumptions of normalcy. This can, in both subtle and overt ways, send a message that being queer is not accepted as a part of our culture, or as a part of paddlesports. Queer individuals are frequently the ones who are aware of this and repeatedly face choices about whether to bring it up with straight or cisgender peers. One way to counteract this is to have more queer instructors introducing people to paddlesports. For paddlers who are straight, they will learn implicitly or explicitly about queer perspectives from these queer instructors. Research has shown that for members of dominant identities, receiving training about bias is ineffective at reducing bias—but, having meaningful contact with people who hold different identities is very effective.

In this training queer paddlers will get to focus on training in an environment specifically designed with us in mind without the stress or uncertainty of how our identity will be viewed. In addition, we will be able to network with other queer athletes and instructors. Lastly, we will learn from each others’ experiences.

LL Bean funding will be used to offset course fees and/or travel for participating individuals. Funding will also be used for costs associated with documentation of this event. Participants will be selected based on completion of a brief google form application.

jordan@paddlesportinstitute.com
www.paddlesportinstiute.com

Contact Information Jordan Taylor
jordan@paddlesportinstitute.com